Alvin Aguilar
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| Arthur Alvin A. Aguilar | |
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| Born | Arthur Alvin A. Aguilar Manila, Philippines |
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| Other names | Alvin Aguilar |
| Martial art practiced | Gracie Jiu-Jitsu, Yaw-Yan, Pekiti-Tirsia Kali |
| Teacher(s) | Sari-an originator Robert Cousart Pekiti-Tirsia Grand Master Zleo Gaje 3-time Ultimate Fighting Champion Royce Gracie |
| Rank | Black Belt |
Arthur Alvin A. Aguilar is a prominent and well respected fighter of the mixed martial arts community in the Philippines. He has studied multiple forms of martial arts and has developed his own unique style of fighting. Aguilar has helped increase awareness in and the popularity of the sport. He is the founder of the popular mixed martial art tournament, URCC, which he created without the intention of personally fighting in to showcase himself but rather, to give young MMA practitioners a venue to shine. Aguilar is considered a legend in Philippine MMA, being the first Filipino to be awarded a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.[citation needed]
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[edit] Biography
Alvin Aguilar earned his college degree in Behavioral Science at De La Salle University. He first became aware of martial arts at the age of nine, dabbing first in Karate, Arnis and Greco-Roman wrestling. His pursuit of martial arts excellence is guided by three main principles: Authenticy, Credibility, and most of all: Combat Effectivity.
His 16 years of martial arts training has brought him through the plethora of arts available in the local and international scene. Learning and completing instructorship of his arts from the likes of Sari-an originator Robert Cousart, Pekiti-Tirsia Kali Grand Master Zleo Gaje, and 3-time Ultimate Fighting Champion Royce Gracie has brought him at and above par with other Martial arts instructors in the country.
Starting his Gracie Jiu-jitsu training at the Gracie Academy in Los Angeles, California in 1993, he is now a Black Belt in Gracie Jiu-Jitsu, and is one of three existing certified International training representatives to the Gracie Association. The other two come from Nassau, Bahamas and Canada.
Being the only rank holder in his class in the Philippines, Alvin dedicates himself to the development of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu in the Philippines.
[edit] Personal life
An instructor in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu as well as in Filipino knife fighting and kick-boxing, Aguilar has made great strides in getting no-holds barred fighting competitions legitimized and recognized in the Philippines. The organization he belongs to professes to discourage street fighting and strives to give fighters a venue to settle matters fairly inside the ring.
But the fact that he has a bullet lodged somewhere near his spine from a gangland style drive-by shooting that left one person dead underscores that the world of Filipino martial arts is still far more than friendly competitions.[citation needed]
By his own admission, Aguilar comes from a culture of violence. Once a Grand Triskelion of the Tau Gamma Phi Fraternity of De La Salle University, he remembers being called upon on by his "brods" to unleash his combat skills in numerous fights. He freely admits taking drugs even while he was very much into martial arts and notes that many of his peers fell by the wayside because of this.
Now that he is a family man versed in the ethics as well as the combat skills of Brazilian Gracie Jiu-Jitsu, Philippine Sayaw ng Kamatayan (Filipino for "Dance of Death") or Yaw-Yan kick-boxing, and Filipino knife fighting Pekiti-Tirsia Kali, he asserts that he has turned his life around and is now devoted to legitimizing no-holds barred fighting as a sanctioned and regulated sport. Defense Tactics Center or Deftac, the organization that he is a founding member of, emphatically states that it does not produce thugs nor does it tolerate fights outside the ring by its members.
[edit] A culture of violence
Now that there are numerous venues for fighters to prove their superiority fairly and safely in unarmed combat, one might think that martial artists resorting to fully automatic weapons in a night time ambush would be self-defeating and unnecessary. But that is exactly what happened when three M-16 rifle bullets ripped through Aguilar’s abdomen. According to Aguilar, his alleged assailants were former martial arts students who, at one time, were close friends of his. He describes them as those who haven’t graduated from that "culture of violence".
Word out on the street is that the attackers saw the northern half of the Metro as their own territory and that Deftac was perceived as encroaching upon it. Aguilar finds this delineation childish and absurd, and postulates that perhaps his involvement in getting a party-list organization called "Bagong Tao Movement" off the ground in time for the next elections may perhaps also have prompted the attack. At present, the suspects have been identified and charged but are still at large.[citation needed]
As for Aguilar, he was up and about just three weeks after his near fatal experience, valiantly sparring despite a bullet lodged in his lower back.
[edit] URCC
Aguilar, along with television channel Solar Entertainment and events organizer NBK, has organized the highly successful Universal Reality Combat Championship or URCC matches. Other groups have also held similar events such as the Fearless Mixed Martial Arts Championships.
Patterned closely after the well-established tournaments in the United States and Japan, these local competitions are one-on-one unarmed matches where any combination of martial arts can be used and victory is achieved only by knockout or submission. These competitions have proven to be a financial success for local organizers and have gained the approval of the Games and Amusement Board. Participants as well as spectators include the entire economic, social and geographic spectrum of the Philippines.
[edit] Accomplishments
- Head Instructor and Founding member of Defense Tactics Center (DEFTAC).
- President, Universal Reality Combat Championship (URCC)
- Instructor, Sari-An Filipino Martial Arts.
- Instructor, Pekiti-Tirsia.
- Instructor, Carlos Hermanos.
- Sports Director, Yaw-Yan Kickboxing NCR Youth.
- 3-time Undefeated Fighter, Sari-An Annual Sparing Meet.
- Pekiti-Tirsia Awardee, Mabangis Fighter Award.
- 2003 "Filipino Martial Artist of the Year," Universal Martial Arts Hall of Fame.
- 1999 Silver Medallist, Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Tournament (Detroit Michigan , USA).
- Head Coach, Team RAW FURY (Undefeated in local No Holds Barred fights).
- Head Coach, Philippine Jiu-Jitsu Team (Produced 5 Golds & 2 Silvers in three years of International Competition).
- 1st Filipino fighter awarded with a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
- 1st Filipino training representative of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu for the Philippines
- Founder and President of the Universal Reality Combat Championship tournament (URCC, 2002)
- "Most Distinguished Guardian" or M.D.G., the highest honor given by the Tau Gamma Phi Fraternity, for being a former Grand Triskelion of De La Salle University.
